Photo and Commentary ©2024 by Maylan Schurch
Sabbath, January 27, 2024
Last year, in the office supply section of a thrift store, I noticed this colorful card which demonstrates handprinting examples for young schoolchildren. As a former English teacher, I can authoritatively state that there are no “action verbs” in any of these sentences. In other words, nothing happens within them. Instead, each sentence uses the linking verb “is.” Each subject is described by the adjective after the verb.
Notice how all the descriptions are beautiful? These statements contain no turmoil, no discontent, no annoyance, just descriptions of what’s going right. The writer—probably a teacher with experience—wanted to bathe these words in positivity, so the young penman or penwoman wouldn’t be distracted or traumatized.
Sometime years ago, probably mentored in this direction by my praying parents, I received the idea that when you pray you should start by thanking God for His blessings. I’ve done this ever since. If I’m writing my prayers in a notebook, sometimes the first page or page and a half will be filled with these thank-Yous, with maybe another page or so for my requests. I’ve always found this to be a great stabilizer, an equilibrium restorer. Thanking God first doesn’t make the crisis-requests all better, but the more I remind God (and myself) of how powerfully good He’s been, the more confidently I’m able to mention the challenges to Him.
To read several Bible texts about prayer, click the link just below.